Stay or go? New NBA Draft process benefits Tech's Boykins, others

Louisiana Tech senior guard Jacobi Boykins sheds light on why he thinks underclassmen should take advantage of a 2016 rule that allows players to go through the pre-draft process and still return to school
Sean Isabella/The News-Star

Louisiana Tech guard Jacobi Boykins (0) has until May 24 to keep his name in the NBA Draft pool or return to the Bulldogs for his senior season.(Photo: Jeff Blake, Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports)

RUSTON — Jacobi Boykins enjoyed a business getaway halfway across the country last weekend, spending time in Boston for a pre-draft workout with the Celtics.

For the South Florida native and Ruston transplant for the last three years, the big city experience was "different" — not as warm, a bit windier and more people; lots of them.

Two years ago, this wouldn't have been possible for the rising senior at Louisiana Tech, nor any other early entrant to the NBA Draft. A rule change in 2016 pushed the decision deadline for early entrants back from April to 10 days after the NBA Combine, meaning those players who don't sign with an agent have more than a month to decide whether to return to school.

"I always wanted to explore since my freshman year. They just never had the rule," Boykins told The News-Star last week.

"It's a good process. To me, I recommend everyone to do it that is an underclassmen just to get that experience under their belt and know what they're looking for and know what they can work on to get there and get better."

Boykins, who announced in early April his intentions to test the waters, has until May 24 to pull his name out, although he said he's thinking of waiting until May 20 to see if he gets any more workouts.

The 6-foot-6 guard flew to Boston last Saturday and was one of six early entrants who didn't sign with an agent to work out for the team. The workout consisted primarily of 1-on-1 and 3-and-3 work, and the feedback Boykins received from Boston's college scout can only help moving forward.

"The most part they was saying is I need to gain 10 pounds of muscle. They said I can shoot the ball well. They said I play good defense," Boykins said. "What I need to do is put on weight. Playing in the NBA at the two-guard spot at 175 is very hard."

Once Boykins gets his weight up, he projects as a "three-and-D" player at the next level due to his lengthy frame on defense and ability to knock down 3-pointers.

He enjoyed a breakout season as a junior, averaging 14.7 points per game with 2.0 steals and averaging 41 percent from beyond the arc. He set a Tech record with 89 made 3-pointers

Without an agent, Tech coach Eric Konkol and director of basketball operations Andy Fox have helped spread the word about Boykins. They've placed calls to teams like Charlotte, and Boykins is also hopeful to get a call for workouts from some of the regional NBA teams like Dallas, Houston and New Orleans.

Per the new rule, early entrants can take visits as long as they don't interfere with school, meaning the Boston trip had to occur on a weekend since Boykins is still in school.

If nothing else comes up, he knows the process was worth it by at least receiving one workout.

"If you don't get a workout it's kind of like, I wouldn't say a waste of time, but ... for me to get that opportunity and have it under my belt gives me a chip on my shoulder because I know what they're looking for and what they want," Boykins said. "It's just putting in extra work to get there. I know I can so I just gotta get there now."

This year, 182 players declared early for the draft, including 137 from the college ranks. That number is up 20 from 162 (117 college players) for the 2016 draft, which was the first year the new rule went into effect.

Of the 117 early entrants in 2016, 58 returned to school. Roughly half of the 59 remaining early entrants were drafted with the rest falling failing to earn a selection in the two-round draft.

In Boston, Boykins and his workout group spoke about the process and mentioned how it makes sense to come back, especially being close to graduation, if a player isn't a first-round pick.

Still, Boykins used the word "overwhelming" to describe the process, although he said it's not as much pressure knowing he can still take his name out.

"I know people have a lot of weight on their shoulders because it's only two rounds, 60 picks. It's not like the NFL," he said. "If somebody don't get picked, it's like, 'Dang, what's the next step?'"

Outside of the workout and training with an NBA ball instead of a college ball, nothing has changed for Boykins. He's still in school, he still goes through individual workouts and he still lifts weights with the team.

It's one of the reasons why Konkol and Tech's staff are supportive of Boykins' decision to declare early without an agent. They both agree the trend of declaring early without an agent and returning to school will continue to gain traction.

Prior to the rule change, programs and coaches benefited the most, since they knew before the April signing period if they'd need to fill a roster spot due to an NBA departure.

The later date makes it tricky to replace a player this late in the process, but coaches like Konkol are willing to deal with if it means helping fulfill a life-long dream for one or more of their players.

"You can assess that information so if you chose to come back, going into your senior year, you're equipped with some really good information," Konkol said. "You have experience against the world's elite. It can be a real springboard for knowing what you need to do to achieve and get to that level one day.

"It's our job as coaches, as teachers, to help mentor them and help advise them and help them do what they came to college to do, and that's to better themselves. Opportunities come in life sometimes just once, and you want to be able to be equipped with information."